Tag
by Shade Mimir
Summary: The hand that gripped her forearm was firmer than ever. Zuko was stronger than she remembered, but that counted for very little when only Azula knew the rules to their game. It was her turn now and Azula loved to win..."


A/N: After the Boiling Rock, I my Avatar fever set in, and I couldn't resist writing a quick oneshot. As fair warning, I worked without a beta. A fair amount of punctuation abuse is to be expected, as is my own special brand of story tense.

That aside, I adore Azula and Zuko's relationship. This fic isn't considered Zucest by any means, I don't even have any particular ship I follow. I just wanted to try my hand at exploring the way they feel about one another. Hopefully, I didn't fail horribly.

Tag

By Shade Mimir

Azula could hear the birds, but she preferred the clicks and low hums of the bugs in the high grass. She could silence the latter if their noises became tiresome. Birds were a bit trickier. They could manage to avoid even the most well aimed bending.

It was all very irksome, but at that moment the noises of both the high grass and the trees were blending nicely. The palace had very large grounds, so it was easy to just get away and listen to nature. It was exponentially easier to pick out what didn't belong in this empty terrain.

The footsteps were light. They were from someone only a little larger than herself.

The footsteps were barely audible. They were from someone who had received the same training as she, though they weren't nearly as skilled.

The footsteps were her big brother's , and Azula did her best to pretend she didn't hear them.

This was a difficult thing to do. Azula liked winning, and, in this regard, there was always much fun to be had with Zuko when she could pry him away from mother.

A smile tugged at the young girl's lips. Zuko was getting closer. He had to be almost within arm's reach, and Azula could feel her adrenaline flowing already.

"You're it!"

Azula felt Zuko grab her forearm and spun around, their smiling faces only inches apart a moment before her brother took off toward the pond.

This was the only game Azula never wanted to win. It was the chase that was her favorite. It wasn't that she was unusually fast. Zuko could avoid her for a while, and she preferred it that way. She craved the challenge.

Zuko looked over his shoulder and Azula heard him laugh. She was well aware that she was laughing too. Their voices had already drowned out the noises of the bugs and birds they hadn't scared off.

Heart pounding and pulse racing, Azula reached for her brother's back. Her fingers stretched and her legs achieved the sort of mad, carefree speed only a child can attain. She was still too far away, yet close enough to cause Zuko worry. He looked back again and, consequently, stumbled, taking a hard spill into the grass.

"I've got you Zuko!"

Azula tackled her older brother, wrestling him onto his back. She hadn't won until he admitted his defeat.

"Ow! Azula, get off!" But the smile was still on Zuko's face as their struggle continued. Of course, it wouldn't be there for much longer. Azula would drag this on until they were both bruised and exhausted. She would keep at it until this was no longer a game for Zuko and mother came to break them up.

Azula liked that part best. It made it just a part of daily life; just a part of being home.

There were no birds in the trees and Azula couldn't hear any bugs. She couldn't even hear the footsteps, though she was quite certain they would be coming soon.

The fire wasn't as wonderful an addition to the palace as she might have hoped. As a princess of the Fire Nation, their respective element had always had a sort of charm that reminded her of home. Seeing the two together, however...

_This won't do at all._

Azula's chest tightened as a tree cracked and fell to smoulder off to her right. She stood her ground however. Though the air was growing thick and the heat was beginning to go to her head, Azula remained in place.

The Fire Nation had fallen. No troops had been called back and no surrender made, but Azula was already quite certain of their defeat. Surely, surrender would come when word spread of what had become of her father.

Ozai.

Azula could feel him even now, disappointed in her for giving up so soon. She was of royal blood. She was the favorite, a prodigy. He had expected so much from her, and the weight of that was heavier than the thick smoke rising over the distant city-scape.

A wicked smile curved Azula's lips. None of this worried her. Father would be proud soon enough. The Fire Nation had fallen, but Azula had not. In defeat, she could still manage one small victory.

"Azula!"

Zuko's voice came loudly but at no great distance. A wave of anticipation chilled Azula's body, and her smile widened. She remained motionless however, leaving her back to brother dearest. She could feel his unease. The field itself would be ablaze soon enough, and the princess prided herself in being difficult to read.

Her brother was weak. He could not allow her to die, Azula had no doubt of that. For all her cruelty, she was still his little sister; his one and only. The flame that crawled around her feet crackled and popped and hissed on the dry ground, but Azula could hear only the promises of immortality. With her brother at her back, she could not die.

"Azula, what are you doing?" The demand came with no expectations of answer. Footsteps followed immediately, cautious but swift.

Azula straightened the hand at her chest, feeling the tingle of electricity on her fingertips. The moments were ticking past so slowly and her adrenaline was rising to the most intoxicating of levels.

The hand that gripped her forearm was firmer than ever. Zuko was stronger than she remembered, but that counted for very little when only Azula knew the rules to their game. It was her turn now and Azula loved to win...

The space between Azula and her brother flashed a brilliant blue. The colors sparked and the electricity arced outwards. Azula's broad smile, however fell. Zuko's face, only inches from hers was far from dismayed. His betrayed expression was missing as he seemed to flow around her, his hand never leaving her forearm as the the lightening passed him by, splintering a tree several yards away.

Azula was tired, and though certain her brother would never kill her, the notion of waking to the walls of a prison cell seemed even less inviting. "Traitor!" she howled accusingly. There wasn't another attack in her this soon after one failure. Her energy was spent and her defenses fallen. No manipulation could convince Zuko to just give up and die for her. "Disgusting, pathetic, traitor!"

Zuko wasn't stronger than his sister. Azula was certain of this as surely as she was certain of anything. She was infallible, and though she could feel her father's disappointment looming heavily once more, this weighed upon her little now. Ozai's death was an inconvenience, but no great tragedy. What did his opinion matter now that he had failed so utterly?

Claw-like fingernails worked frantically at Zuko's arm as he pulled her. Should she bend now, it would be the end of them both. In the shaky light from the fire around them, Azula could make out the face mirroring her own. It was frustrated and heavily lined with fatigue. It twisted slightly in anger before a hand was brought sharply across her face.

A bitter, metallic taste filled Azula's mouth and trickled down her chin before she had the good sense to wipe it away.

"We need to get somewhere safe!"

Azula's forearm was released and her shoulders gripped instead.

"I promise, you won't go to prison. if you come with me _right now_."

With that said, Azula couldn't help but smile humorlessly. "Of course you wouldn't allow them to just stick me in some prison, big brother. Mai would think you're being silly, but I guess that's love. I suppose you'll want to know where she's hiding these days. You know, she said-"

"I already know where she and Ty lee are, Azula," Zuko said impatiently. His hands slipped from his sister's shoulders, leaving her surprisingly cold in the intense heat. "I'll talk to Aang. You'll have to lie low, but-"

"You know I won't," Azula interrupted, smiling faintly once more. So it wasn't only immortality she had, it was freedom as well. Both of these might have seemed promising had there not been something she desired more than either..

"I know," Zuko sighed, reaching for Azula's arm again as her eyes, suspiciously, searched his own.

"Then lead the way, Zuzu," she said sourly. She could still chase, even if he wasn't willing to run. As long as she was the one to catch him in the end, what happened in between was of little consequence.

Azula stiffened as Zuko resisted a safe, restraining grip on his sister's arm, opting to take her by the hand instead. It was a combination of this dismay and the suffocating heat that kept Azula from pulling away or even realizing Zuko was moving toward the streets at a jog.

The jarring movement sent Azula stumbling. Anyone else might have fallen, but Azula managed to save herself by launching into a stumbling sort of run after Zuko. Low to the ground, Zuko's grip again felt strong and sure. With his back to her, he was within reach, but Azula no longer felt as if she was chasing.

Azula had never felt so small, nor had she ever felt quite so young. Everyone had left her side and only Zuko had come back. She could let him lead for now. Maybe she would even regret killing him. The look on his face would be glorious , surprised yet accepting of her inevitable betrayal.

Maybe they would fight. The battle would be furious and long, but, of course, Azula would emerge victorious. The look frozen upon Zuko's face would be full of hatred and anger. She could see it so clearly in her mind now, and the image gave her reason to smile genuinely as they ran.

Admittedly, once that was done with, Azula would be alone. Yes, she would miss him. Even Azula's pride wouldn't allow her to deny that fact.

Azula's fingers shifted around Zuko's grip, her hand no longer limp in his. She rolled her eyes as he glanced back, smiling faintly in the darkness. Perhaps killing him could wait a week or two after all.

The look on his face wasn't at all what she had expected.

Azula found her hand suddenly empty and her eyes drawn to the blue light speeding off toward the pond. She dug her heels into the ground sliding in front of Zuko as he fell and catching him securely by the shoulders.

"I've got you, Zuko."

Their faces were close again, Azula's shock mingling with unintentional concern and fear. She had neither the time nor ability to hide these motions away until they had been read. Her arms moved around Zuko to keep him standing and they tightened further still when she felt his head against her shoulder.

"Princess Azula, are you all r-"

Azula recognized the guard as one of considerable rank and prowess. This wasn't nearly enough for Azula to stay her hand, and there was no one to catch the loyal bender as they fell and disappeared into the high grass.

It was all gone now, all in the past. Azula had missed her opportunity, and someone else had snatched it from her. She should have acted sooner. She should have done so _many _things sooner.

Azula dug her fingers into Zuko's back as she lowered herself into the high grass and onto the ground. It wasn't difficult to maneuver her brother, Azula had always been so _strong_. Once he was on his back she lowered his head onto her lap, a first and final kindness that she wasn't leaving him behind. After all, he had come back for her, having nowhere else to be, this place seemed as good as any to wait with him.

Zuko looked content, Azula decided, laying one hand flat over his chest, where a small circle of fabric and flesh was ripped and blackened. She wondered if he had been afraid. She wondered if he knew that she loved him. In her own twisted, possessive way, she had. Azula didn't regret not telling even now... She only wondered.

Azula studied Zuko's face carefully. In his last moments, she was certain he must of known. This round, the game had lost its fun for her first. Azula had known all the rules. She had written them and, somehow, still managed to lose.

Raising her free hand, Azula wiped her eyes and looked straight ahead. It was almost morning. Even the fire creeping through the high grass was beginning to remind her of home again.

A/N: Thanks for reading! Remember that reviews are always appreciated XD! Good or, eep, negative, they compel me to write more.


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